SPRINGFIELD - At-large City Councilor Justin Hurst said Wednesday that Police Commissioner John Barbieri should be "stripped of his disciplinary duties" for his failure to fire a detective accused of threatening to kill two juveniles and to plant drug evidence on them.

Police Commissioner John Barbieri

In addition, Hurst said that the current mayor-appointed Community Police Hearing Board, that advises Barbieri, "is a sham and the community knows it."

Hurst, in prepared release, criticized Barbieri's decision to suspend Detective Gregg Bigda for 60 days rather than fire him the officer, comparing the commissioner's discipline to a "smack on the wrist."

The suspension occurred after Bigda's actions were caught on a police videotape and reportedly showed the detective threatening two juveniles in police lockup after they were accused of stealing an undercover police cruiser which was left running outside a pizza shop.

"Each day Detective Bigda remains on the force I lose faith in Commissioner Barbieri and everyone in the Mayor's administration who he is taking advice from," Hurst said. "The mayor is living in a fantasy world if he believes that this issue is going away and his most recent comments only serve as a smoke screen to the issue at hand."

Sarno said Tuesday and again Wednesday that he fully supports Barbieri and the city's police officers and he does not believe there is any systemic problem of police brutality in Springfield, despite the accusations against Bigda and a separate incident where 12 officers are accused of taking part in the beating of a small group of men outside a city bar.

Sarno's spoke on the issue after U.S. Magistrate Judge Katherin A. Robertson refused to dismiss a police brutality case against the city and officers including Bigda in a different case, and ruled that the plaintiff's lawyers may argue the department has systemically failed in supervising and disciplining its officers."

Hurst said residents deserve more information about the Bigda case and Barbieri "needs to explain why has chosen to support a rogue officer at the expense of the safety our City."

"As it stands now, Barbieri should be stripped of his disciplinary duties," Hurst said. "The 60 day suspension of Bigda sends a message to the entire department that if you threaten to kill, plant drugs on suspects, and utter racially charged remarks during the course of an interrogation you will only receive a smack on the wrist."

Sarno said that claims of police brutality and misconduct are fully investigated and punishment is handed out when merited. He said the officers of Springfield risk their lives daily and deal with offenders who are not "patron saints."

Hurst said the "great work of our law enforcement officials has been compromised because of this officer's actions and criminals have and will continue to be set free as a result," referring to the still unknown number of cases which District Attorney Anthony Gulluni's office has had to throw out or plea down due to the questions surrounding Bigda.

"I remain puzzled as to how our Mayor, who clearly has seen the video tape, can be so supportive of a Commissioner who has made one of the worst decisions when it comes to disciplining a police officer that I have seen in a long time," Hurst said. "The Mayor owes the public an explanation for his silence and inaction regarding this incident and the longer citizens have to wait for information the more disappointed they become."

Regarding the Community Police Hearing Board, which can only offer suggestions to the commissioner, Hurst said the seven member board created by Sarno in 2010 to review police misconduct cases, "has failed miserably," and did not review the Bigda matter.

Sarno said he stands by his comments this week "in support of Commissioner Barbieri, our 'men and women in blue' and the Community Police Hearing Board."

"The CPHB members are a diverse cross-section of our community, who serve with integrity, honesty and professionalism," Sarno said. "They review every single complaint that is made and make a recommendation as to whether disciplinary charges and a hearing should be issued. 'Nothing is swept under the rug.'

Sarno also said that if there is any improper action by an officer, "it will not be tolerated."

As in the past Commissioner Barbieri and our CPHB have been very diligent in dealing with these situations appropriately," Sarno said.

Barbieri was not immediately available for comment.

Hust said that Bigda or any other officer can circumvent the CPHB if they admit to their mistakes, which "makes the board useless when it comes to recommending discipline for police misconduct.

"What purpose does the CPHB serve if Commissioner Barbieri gets to pick and choose which police misconduct cases come before them for a recommendation?" Hurst said. "It's simple...the cases in which Barbieri feels that the CPHB will disagree with him on will not be brought before them and the general public will continue to be led to believe that in most cases the CPHB and the Commissioner are in agreement."

Hurst was also critical of the advisory board members for not publicly speaking out on the alleged bypass of reviewing the Bigda case.

"The CPHB should have been livid about not being able to give a recommendation regarding the Bigda case to the Commissioner," Hurst said. "Instead, this board that is charged with serving as an eye for the community when it comes to police misconduct has not said a word. If they cannot be a voice for the city in the Bigda case, where a recommendation from an independent body was desperately needed, then they never will."

Councilor Bud L. Williams also issued a statement, saying he has always believed that Barbieri "cannot be the judge, jury, and executioner when it comes to handling cases of police misconduct."

"If the Community Police Hearing Board does not have any teeth, which it appears they don't, then we need to go back to a Police Commission to get the job done," Williams said.